During the 17th century, Dutch traders established trade posts and plantations throughout the Americas; actual colonization, with Dutch settling in the new lands was not as common as with settlements of other European nations. Many of the Dutch settlements had been abandoned or lost by the end of the century, with the exception of the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba, which remain Dutch territory until this day, and Suriname, which became independent in 1975.

In 1621, a new company was established for with a trading monopoly in the Americas and West Africa: the Dutch West India Company (Westindische Compagnie or WIC). The WIC sought recognition for the area in the New World - which had been called New Netherland - as a province, which was granted in 1623. Soon after, the first colonists, mostly from present-day Belgium and Germany, arrived in the new province.

The Dutch established a base on St. Croix in 1625, the same year that the British did. French Protestants joined the Dutch but conflict with the British colony led to its abandonment before 1650. The Dutch established a settlement on Tortola[?] in 1648 and later on Anegada[?] and Virgin Gordo[?]. The British took Tortola in 1672 and Anegada and Virgin Gordo in 1680.

The European colony in Suriname was founded in the 1650s by Lord Willoughby, the governor of Barbados. This colony was captured by the Dutch under Abraham Crijnsen[?] during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It was sold to the Dutch West India Company in 1683 and came to be known as Dutch Guiana[?]. They colony developed an agricultural economy based on African slavery. During the Napoleonic Wars, England controlled Suriname from 1799 until 1816, when it was returned to the Dutch. The Netherlands granted Suriname independence in 1975. Political instability resulted in large numbers of Surinamese moving to the Netherlands.

The Dutch West Indian Company built a fort in 1616 on the Essequibo River[?]. The Dutch traded with the Indian peoples and, as in Suriname, established sugar plantations worked by African slaves. While the coast remained under Dutch control, the English established plantations west of the Suriname River[?]. Conflict between the two countries meant parts of the region changed hands a number of times, but by 1796 Britain had control of the region. The Netherlands ceded he colonies of Essequibo[?], Demerara[?], and Berbice[?] to Britain in 1814.

Between 1638 and 1640 the Netherlands comes to control almost half of Brazil, with their capital in Recife. The Dutch West India Company sets up their headquarters in Recife. The governor, Johan Maurits[?] invites artists and scientists to the colony to help promote Brazil and increase immigration. The Portuguese win a significant victory in the Battle of Guararapes[?] in 1649. By 1654, the Netherlands had surrendered and returned control of all Brazilian land to the Portuguese.